My dog is much stronger than I am!

Question
We just got a purebred blue merle Border Collie named Boo
from my boyfriend's parents.  He's about two years old and
very well-behaved for the most part.  He's very calm and
loving, but he's been living in a huge backyard and chasing
a pet deer for the past two years.  We took him because
he'd learned to cut the deer off in more clever ways and
his playful nipping was starting to really hurt the deer.

Now that we have him, though, he seems much happier with
all of the human attention.  He lives in the house and we
have a doggy-door installed for him.  My biggest problem
now is teaching him to use a leash!  I'm very small - only
5'0 and about 100lbs, and so far when I try to walk Boo, he
just pulls me along like I'm not even there.  I try to stop
him every few feet and make him sit, but as soon as he gets
up again to walk, he's tugging me along again.  I'm worried
that one of us could get hurt - he could pull me hard
enough to knock me down if he got excited enough by
something, and if he really tugged me out into the street,
I'm not sure I could stop him if a car came!  

I have read in a few places that choke collars are a good
tool, but I'm not sure how to use them.  What steps can I
take to get Boo walking on a leash properly?  He seems
eager to please when we're in the house or in the backyard,
but as soon as we get outside with all the interesting
scents and sights, he's too distracted to really pay
attention to me.  I've tried putting him on a leash in the
house, and that's a lot easier on both of us, but we have a
small house and there just isn't too much room for much
real walking around.

Is a choke collar absolutely necessary?  Could I just walk
him in the backyard, perhaps?  I'm still worried that once
we got out into the front and around the neighborhood, he'd
get distracted again!


Answer
As always, make sure you have a clean bill of health from your veterinarian so you know there are no health concerns with your companion.

From there, check for a local training center or private trainer that may be able to come to your home to help you get up to speed with your dog as quickly as possible. Often having someone right there to see you interact and coach you training can get you going really quickly on having a great relationship.

I always like to start by teaching the dog to pay attention to the person. If you can get the brain trained on you, the rest gets simpler. You can start teaching this at home by having the dog on leash and sitting or standing near you. Hold a small pea sized treat (something soft and tasty like turkey hot dog or cheese) out to the side of your body at arm's length and about shoulder height. Do not ask the dog to look at you, but wait until he looks in your eyes and then give him a taste of the treat. You are teaching him that looking at you gets the goodies and ignoring you does nothing for him. This is a great place to begin your conditioning.

There are a number of alternatives available to you for training your dog to walk politely. While walking, you can stop and wait for your dog to come back to you, or you can change direction when he is pulling, you can use a treat to lure him into the right position. This is where a local trainer or training center would be helpful to you.

Getting your dog out and about is excellent for exercise and mental stimulation too. The key is to get him working in a fashion that you are happy with.

Good Luck!

Links:
http://outlawchinooks.com/Pack_Leader.html
http://www.goodpooch.com/MyGoodPooch/heelin1day.htm